Need your Love
by Sode no Shirayuki1411
Summary: When Himori Akiyama and Andreana 'Andy' Domyoji are sent on an undercover assignment with a extra catch 'happy' is not exactly the word that should be used to describe them. But as loyal members of Scepter 4 they'll do their duty come Hell, high water, romance or coffee shortages, okay, maybe not that last one... Akiyamaxfem!Andy.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi guys, here's my new story. I did end up deciding to update 2 stories at once and flicking back between the two, it just took me longer than I hoped.**

 **This fic is set in the same world as my other K genderflipped stories, but you don't need to read those first to understand this one.**

 **Other than that, not much to say, hope you enjoy guys.**

 **I own nothing but the plot.**

* * *

Chapter 1: Working together

* * *

"Say what?" A weird smile twisted Andreana 'Andy' Domyoji's face and all she could think was 'oh crap.'

"You want us to do _what?"_ She asked blankly, expecting the lieutenant to reprimand her for her slowness and her lack of formality and frankly not caring at all.

Lieutenant Awashima didn't scold her, instead she sighed. "If anything else were possible then that is the path we would follow. But as of now this is our only option."

"But..." Andy searched for the right words. She glanced at Himori Akiyama beside her whose face looked as though it had been carved from stone, but Domyoji knew him, she could see the unease bordering on panic hidden in his eyes.

"Does it have to be us?" Andy asked.

"Does it have to be _her?"_ Akiyama asked at the same time.

There was an awkward and pain-filled silence between the two of them.

Seri mentally shook her head in dismay; these two were an excellent team. They balanced each other out perfectly. Where she was rash, he was level-headed, where she was fiery, he was calm, where he held back, she forged ahead.

Correction, these two _used to be_ an excellent team.

Contrary to what every member of Scepter 4 seemed to believe (every member of the Special Squad _definitely_ believed it), Seri was not all-knowing, she had absolutely no idea what had caused this break between Scepter 4's wonder pair, and it seemed neither half of the aforementioned 'wonder pair' had any intention of fixing it.

Which would be regular trouble normally but, with the mission Awashima had just assigned the two of them, it was BIG trouble.

"Um, pardon my questioning, ma'am," Himori began, Seri nodded, indicating for him to continue, "but wouldn't Enomoto and Fuse be a better choice for this mission for, uh, obvious reasons?"

Enomoto and Fuse had been together since January, lucky bastards.

Andy nodded vigorously but Awashima shook her head, "they might but the two of them have already left on their own mission which needs someone with Enomoto's computer expertise, so it had to have been done by her."

'Then why couldn't I have worked with Fuse, or Goto, or even Kamo?' Andy wanted to ask, 'or why couldn't Himo-Akiyama work with Hidaka, or Benzai, he works well with Benzai.' Andy wanted to say this but didn't, because if she did Lieutenant Awashima would start asking if there was a reason why she and Akiyama couldn't work together. And that; Andy didn't wanted to answer.

...But Seri was going to ask it anyway.

"Is something the matter?" She asked pointedly.

"No ma'am," they both said at once. Seri didn't believe them but seeing that both were unwilling to say anything she just dismissed them with a "just make sure it doesn't get in the way of doing your job," as a warning.

They both bowed and murmured an assent Awashima didn't think either of them meant and left.

When the door shut behind them Himori turned to his red-haired companion.

"Domyo-" he began but Andy cut him off.

"I'll meet you out here in an hour," she said curtly, _'If that's alright with you,'_ she wanted to add waspishly, but didn't because that would just prove she was really as childish as he had accused her of being. Instead Domyoji turned curtly on her heel and walked off, boots clicking angrily on the tiled floor.

Himori sighed and 'thunked' his head against the wall, "man did I ever screw up this time," he muttered.

"I'll say," a voice behind him agreed, "she's furious with you." Akiyama turned around, his colleague and closest friend Yujiro Benzai stood there, her words were blunt but she smiled at him and her pale brown eyes were kind.

Himori sighed, "I really did it this time. Now she hates me."

"She doesn't hate you," Benzai tried to reassure him, "and actually, 'furious' is a pretty strong word too. She's just upset."

Himori shook his head, "she _really_ hates me, she almost turned down an assignment given to us by the lieutenant so she wouldn't have to work with me."

Benzai frowned, she hadn't heard of Akiyama or Domyoji getting an assignment, "when was this?"

"About two minutes ago," Akiyama said gloomily, "even the lieutenant noticed."

"Did the lieutenant ask why?" Benzai queried.

"Yes," he sighed.

"Did Domyoji tell her?!" She asked.

"No," said Himori, thankfully she hadn't felt that necessary.

"Well did she end up taking the assignment?"

"If she'd said no she would have had to give a reason," Himori pointed out, he wasn't a social person by anyone's standards and already the conversing he'd done today had thoroughly worn him out, but he knew it wasn't over yet, his best friend wasn't going to stop until this made sense to her and she hadn't yet asked the question he'd been dreading.

"So," Benzai asked, "what's the mission?"

Damn, what was it with people all of a sudden asking questions he really, _really_ didn't want to answer today?

"Well, you know that drug ring we think is being run by Strains?"

Benzai snickered slightly, "which one?"

"The one on the outskirts of Kyoto," Himori clarified.

Benzai's smile became somewhat sardonic, "you still should be a little more specific," she murmured but let it go.

"Well since neither us, nor the Kyoto police has had any luck the lieutenant has decided to send Domyoji and I in undercover, we'll be staying at the hotel they use as a cover for their less official business and seeing if we can't find some evidence that will hold up against them."

Benzai winced slightly, but shrugged, "well I understand why the two of you aren't exactly happy but that's actually a decent idea, is it really so bad?"

Himori sighed, no, that wouldn't be _too_ bad. If that was the worst of it.

"We're being sent in undercover as newlyweds," he admitted.

Benzai opened and closed her mouth but no sound came out, her lips twitched, then she finally managed a small "oh. I see." Her lips twitched again.

Himori half scowled at her, she could at least _try_ and act concerned for him, "oh go ahead and laugh, I know you want to."

Benzai tried, in the interest of propriety, to keep her laughter in for another second before giving in and breaking down into a fit of highly unprofessional giggles.

"Oh that's horrible," she gasped in between laughter, "you poor thing."

Akiyama's scowl deepened, for some reason, he couldn't imagine _why,_ she didn't sound very sincere.

"I have to go." He told her, "I need to pack, I can't keep Domyoji waiting."

He walked off, the sound of Benzai vainly trying to control her laughter following him. Some best friend she was.

Himori sighed again, really, with friends like these, who needed enemies?

* * *

On his seat on the plane Akiyama squirmed uncomfortably, it wasn't the seat, the seat was fine, it was the company. The entire three hours they had been stuck in each other's company Domyoji had been glaring out the window, at the wall, over his shoulder, at her shoes, looking everywhere but at him and with the world's biggest scowl across her face the entire time.

Geez, yes they'd argued but he didn't think what had been said would anger her so badly!

This was _Andy Domyoji_ for Heaven's sake! Up until just recently they had all been under the impression that Domyoji was about as capable of holding a grudge as she was of flying. But evidentially they were wrong, or she was really good at flying.

Still, trying to talk about it wouldn't hurt, right?

"Domyoji can we talk?" He asked, slightly hesitant.

Andy sighed through her nose, "well if you insist on talking to me, I can hardly run away now can I?" She muttered, this was true, Akiyama supposed.

"I insist," he muttered, damn this was awkward, she still wasn't looking at him, "I wanted to apologize."

"You've apologized to me before," Domyoji pointed out.

"Yes but I don't think, actually I know, that you didn't accept my apology," Himori replied.

Andy chewed her lower lip for a few seconds, okay, yes, she'd been pretty upset. Not too long ago Andy had been complaining about a mission she and Akiyama had gone on that had ended up going bust, Andy had been whining about it with the good humour of someone who very rarely got truly angry and the ill humour of someone who really hated to lose, so in fact she wasn't really that angry but she _was_ rather annoying. Kamo and Benzai, used to putting up with young children and Andy respectively, had been sympathetic but Akiyama, still a little sore –both figuratively and literally- over the mission going bust himself, had waspishly asked her to _please_ shut up.

Okay, he may not actually have said the words 'shut up' but it was easy to tell what he meant.

This caused Andy to turn to him in disbelief and ask –demand- if he was upset about the mission since he hadn't said a word on the subject since they'd gotten back.

Himroi had snapped that no, he wasn't a upset about the loss because these things happened and could she please stop being such a child?

The instant the words were out of his mouth Akiyama knew he'd gone too far, Benzai and Kamo who'd been murmuring quietly to each other in the background stopped talking instantly and Domyoji's green eyes narrowed to slits. Then Andy turned on her heel and stormed out of the room.

She'd barely spoken to him since.

It wasn't so much what he'd said, it was more that it was him who had said it, if Benzai, Kamo or one of the others had accused her of being a child Andy probably would've stuck out her tongue at them to show them _exactly_ how mature she was and proud of it! But Himori was different. Maybe because she worked best with him, she didn't know, but she had always valued his respect higher than anyone else's, save, perhaps, the King's.

So that had stung.

But Akiyama wasn't to know that, that was her fault, not his.

"If you can forgive my acting like a child recently I can forgive you calling me one," she proposed.

Himori took her hand that was resting on the armrest between them and squeezed, "forgiven?"

Domyoji smiled and squeezed back, "forgiven." She confirmed.

See? That wasn't so hard!

Just then the signs above them turned on and the speakers informed them that the plane would soon be landing and the two buckled in accordingly. Himori tried to let go of Andy's hand but she gripped his tighter, her face alight with excitement, Andy loved flying, especially takeoff and touchdown. By contrast, Himori wasn't all that crazy about flying but the redhead's excitement was contagious and Himori found himself squeezing her hand back again. As his hand tightened on hers he felt the metal of her 'wedding ring' dig into his skin. Akiyama's stomach gave a funny jolt that had nothing to do with the descending plane, how could he have forgotten?

They weren't just going on an undercover assignment; they were going undercover as husband and wife! What had he let himself be dragged into?!

As though she could read his thoughts Domyoji smiled at him, "this'll be fun!"

"Heaven help me," Himori muttered.

* * *

After they (finally) left the airport and reached their hotel, the hotel run by the very Strains(?) they were trying to arrest, Andy tugged on Himori's hand, a backpack over her other arm, he pulled their suitcase along with his free hand.

"Come on dear! We have so much to do!" Domyoji was actually talking about their mission but she looked like any other newlywed wife eager to get started on her honeymoon. This hotel catered specifically to newlywed couples which was why Akiyama and Domyoji were posing as such.

"Don't call me that," Himori muttered under his breath.

"Well I'm not going to call you 'Akiyama,' that would be a dead giveaway that we're not really as close as we should be, and besides, that's not your name anymore, Hiroto Arakaki." She smiled. "I'm so glad the lieutenant decided we should keep our old initials."

 _"My_ old initials," Himori corrected, "your initials if we were to actually get married."

"Same thing really," said 'Aki Arakaki' beaming at her 'husband.'

"No. It's isn't, and stop enjoying this so much," Himori ordered.

"Never!"

* * *

After they had put their things away, and done a decent job acting like a married couple on the way to and fro if Akiyama did say so himself, then they went to get lunch and talk in a place where there wouldn't be cameras watching their every move.

"So, let's get down to business," said Domyoji, her smile fading into a serious expression, or at least as serious as Domyoji ever was, "we should spend a few days acting like a legitimate married couple on their honeymoon so we avoid suspicion, while we do that we can get to know the locals, find out who knows who and what. And we can even see the sights while we do it like a real married couple!" She beamed.

"I don't know what sights you're expecting to see here, and stay on topic please," Himori sighed, sipping his coffee, Domyoji had _way_ too much energy, didn't she even feel jetlag?

"I am staying on topic!" She cried, "this comes under the heading of 'acting like a married couple'!"

"Anyway," said Akiyama, trying not to spend too long on the 'married couple' part of the operation, he didn't want to lose his nerve, "by then we should have some clue to who's really running things behind the scenes here, we'll spend a few days on them and see what we can uncover about them, if all goes well then we should be able to find some proof as to their crimes or at least come up with a lead, if not..."

"We start again," Andy finished, sipping her iced chocolate. Himori nodded.

Together they finished their drinks and left.

* * *

"And I'm his wife, just call me Aki!" Andy finished with a blinding smile, sitting on the bench behind her Himori gave the older couple a much less convincing smile.

"Really? You two don't act like a newly married couple," the older woman said, looking from one to the other.

The smiles slid from both faces like water, "really?" Asked Domyoji, dismayed.

"You're both very comfortable around each other, like old friends, you don't seem like you've only been married for a while."

Himori sighed inwardly, day one: already a total screw up.

"We've known each other for a while," said Andy smoothly, seemingly unfazed. Himori was going to take a minute to despair over the fact that the young woman he often thought of as reckless and unprofessional was _way_ better at this than he was.

But that was the truth, wasn't it?

They hadn't known each other for a really, very long time. But it wasn't about the quantity of time spent together but the quality. Their work in Scepter 4 had more than once put their lives on the line, almost half a year ago, in January; Domyoji had almost been blown up by a violent Strain targeting Enomoto, she had very nearly died and her wounds had taken months to fully heal.

With their lives so often on the line they depended on each other as much as any married couple would, everyone (well, almost everyone) from Scepter 4 depended on each other like that. But Akiyama depended on Domyoji even more than that, they often worked together and his life had more than once been in her hands, she was brash and reckless but she'd never let him down. And he liked to think she felt the same way about him.

Wait, back up, had he really just compared the whole of Scepter 4 to a married couple? Oh God...

Akiyama leaned forwards and ground the heels of his hands into his eye sockets, he was really going to need some brain bleach.

"What's wrong?" Andy asked, placing a hand on his arm.

"Headache," he lied through gritted teeth, well it wasn't a total lie, he had one now! Mind soap! ASAP!

Domyoji smiled at him, and wrapped her fingers gently around his arm and pulled him to his feet, "let's go lie down," she suggested.

What a fine idea.

* * *

Akiyama and Domyoji glanced at each other and then glanced away awkwardly, "I'm sorry," Andy apologized. "I knew about this, in theory, but I never really thought about... I just wasn't thinking..." She blushed and trailed off.

"N-No problem, I'll sleep on the couch," said Himori, also blushing, it wasn't actually a big problem on its own it was the, uh, _implications_ that went with it that had them both blushing.

There was only one bed.

* * *

 **Done! Hope you enjoyed!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello everyone! Just wanted to give thanks to for following, LeoHamato for favoriting and, of course, my bff viexon for follow/fav/reviewing; there's nothing to say Andy won't get mad again and yes, I updated. LOOK! I DID IT AGAIN!**

 **You guys all rock!**

 **That's all guys, hope you enjoy, I own nothing.**

* * *

Chapter 2: Results, or lack thereof

Andy's shoulder brushed Himori's as she sat next to him and they held their new, non-Scepter 4 issued PDAs up next to each other to compare information. Neither of them wanted to risk writing down what they found out on paper or even on a laptop, it was safer this way, storing what they knew on a device they kept on them 24/7, and easier too, as they could send information to each other and the others back at Headquarters with a touch.

Akiyama squinted to see his screen in the bright sunlight, he understood that this wasn't a conversation they wanted to have at the hotel where any amount of suspects could be watching anytime, anywhere, what he didn't understand was why they were sitting on a park bench in the bright sunlight. At the very least couldn't they have picked one in the shade?

Domyoji, swung her legs back and forth idly, the sun seemed to make it hard for her to see too, she was squinting at the screen. But after a second she tilted her head back and hummed in pleasure as the sun warmed her face. The light turned her red hair the colour of golden-red fire and Himori found himself staring. It was a very beautiful colour, so out of place in the sea of blacks and browns around them, himself included.

He shook himself, "let's stay focused."

He wasn't sure which one of them he was talking to.

* * *

"So we can cross out all of the workers except for the cook, the receptionist, the man who runs the place and two of the maids," Akiyama summarised, everyone else had either an alibi for the nights of the drug busts or other evidence that proved they had nothing to do with the drug ring.

"If it's even the hotel staff in the first place," he added pessimistically.

"Well let's finish investigating them before we start worrying about that," said Domyoji, a tad more optimistically, "so we have five people who might be involved and from the reports we know that there are at least four Strains."

"True, so our first step should be to find out if any of these five display supernatural powers, however, even if we find that one of them does not, we should not automatically assume that he or she has nothing to do with these crimes." Himori said and Andy nodded.

Himori looked over the list again on his PDA, and instead of using her own PDA Andy crushed herself against his shoulder so she could see the screen on his too.

Himori barely blinked, Scepter 4 was not exactly well known for their touchy-feely personalities but Domyoji had always been the exception to their rules, this was not a new habit she had developed when they had been sent undercover as husband and wife, this was something she did constantly. Like the rest of Scepter 4, or at least their inner circle, Himori had long since gotten used to her closeness.

All he did was roll his eyes before continuing, "well the maids shouldn't be too hard to discover if we just keep an eye on them and it should be easy enough to watch the receptionist also but I don't know how we'll ever find an excuse to go near the cook or the manager."

Andy hummed again, "you just leave the cook to me, I'll deal with him. As for the manager... well chances are if the members of the staff are involved then he is too but we'll investigate him last, hopefully we'll have run into him by then."

"And if we haven't run into him by then?" Himori, always one to think ahead, asked.

"Then we'll _make_ a reason to run into him," Andy, never one to think ahead, replied.

The plan was hardly watertight but with not actually knowing if these workers were involved, if they were Strains, and if they were, what kind of powers they had, it was the best they could do until they got new information. Andy and Himori put their PDAs away and headed back to their hotel.

* * *

It was the third day since they had arrived on their 'honeymoon,' Domyoji always had to fight a smile or a giggle when she thought that word and the two of them were on the bed together.

No, not like that, Himori was pretending to be unwell so the two of them could stay at the hotel instead of going off and doing 'couple-y things.'

Himori was confined to the bed, or at least their rooms but this left Andy with a perfect excuse to stay in and around the hotel, she couldn't _possibly_ leave her sick beloved!

* * *

With her easy-going personality Andy had no trouble making friends with the two maids who were both young women themselves and were perfectly happy to gossip while they did their work.

Eventually 'Aki' apologized for taking up the maid, Saki's, time and went back to her own rooms.

 _Oh no, I'm coming down!_ Andy thought, dismayed, her caffeine was beginning to wear off.

Andy loved sleep, given her way she would sleep 10 hours a night, due to being up at six this meant she was usually in bed by eight. She couldn't do that anymore.

True, due to being on their 'honeymoon' Andy and Himori no longer had to be up at 6 (they agreed 9 was a good time, not too early as to make people wonder why they were keeping to a work schedule but not too late as to waste their morning), but they didn't go to bed at 8 either.

Actually, they went to bed, if not early, then usually not too late either (10:30pm for the last three days), but Andy was never able to fall asleep until midnight or later.

She'd shared a room with Benzai ever since she'd joined Scepter 4 but that wasn't nearly the same as sharing a bed with someone.

And what was more, Andy had the sinking feeling that if it were anyone else in the bed beside her she would have no trouble falling asleep, but for some reason, with Akiyama beside her, she couldn't quit focusing on the fact that he was so close long enough for sleep to take her.

Domyoji's cheeks warmed, _you're acting like you fancy him,_ she thought to herself. Her cheeks turned the colour of her hair and she shook herself to rid her mind of that unbidden thought.

 _I don't fancy him,_ she reassure herself. Yes, like she had thought earlier, she respected Himori a great deal and valued his option above virtually everyone's, she was also happy to see him, anytime, anywhere, even when he did nothing more than politely bid her good morning or sigh at her antics he brightened up her day and she would prefer to have him over anyone else watching her back.

But that was because she trusted him and she was _fond_ of him, not because she was romantically inclined towards him. She felt that way about Benzai and Kamo and Hidaka too-

Domyoji stopped.

No. No she didn't feel like that towards those three. After Akiyama they were her favourite people in Scepter 4, Enomoto, Fuse and Goto coming in close behind, but Andy didn't feel that way about _any_ of them. Only Akiyama.

Andy shook her head again and continued walking, _that doesn't prove anything._ Did it?

Reaching the door she opened it softly, removed her shoes and padded on bare feet to the adjoining bedroom, when she reached the doorway, she paused.

"Hiroto, are you awake?" She called softly, so she wouldn't wake Himori up if he wasn't.

"Yes," came the soft reply. Andy walked over to the bed and, after only a split second of hesitation she lay down next to her 'husband,' wrapping her arms around him.

"Are you feeling any better?" She asked in an ordinary voice. Dropping back to a whisper she added, "if either of the maids are Strains or are involved they're damn good actors." She told him.

The convenient thing about this position was that, lying body to body, face to face, with her arms around his neck, it was _so_ easy to whisper to one another without getting caught.

Andy really doubted there were any cameras in here (and if there were then they would have already caught a supposedly 'married' couple embarrassed over the idea of sharing a bed together) but better safe than sorry. After Enomoto's 'Strain Incident' at the beginning of the year, Scepter 4 was appropriately wary when it came to Strains with a talent for ruining or disrupting lives, especially if technology was involved in any way.

After his own, considerably longer, moment of consideration, Himori wrapped his arms around Domyoji's waist, partly because this seemed like a loving thing to do if there were any cameras watching them, and partly because he was worried Domyoji was going to tumble off the bed, he was lying on the right side of the bed facing the right wall, so when Domyoji had come and placed herself next to him, facing him, he had immediately become concerned that she was going to tumble backwards and smash her head on the bedside table.

Trust Domyoji to do a thing like that.

Well, the bedside table would undoubtedly come off worse than her but still, something Himori would prefer to avoid if possible.

Andy's cheeks warmed, to hide it she tilted her head up towards the bed head, could he hear the way her heart was hammering? She hoped not because she didn't understand herself why it was beating so quickly.

"A bit better," he said. Also dropping to a whisper he asked, "did you see any of the others?"

"Yeah, I met the cook and hung out in the reception a little bit," she murmured, still blushing, why was he hugging her? Oh well, she put it out of her mind, he was warm and she was really tired. "But I'll definitely need to watch them more."

She shifted backwards and Himori's stomach gave a horrible lurch as he felt gravity pull her away from him, that idiot was going to fall!

Faster than was probably natural, Himori rolled the other way, taking Domyoji with him, rolling her body over his so she was lying flat on her back on the middle of the bed, him hovering over her slightly, her arms still around his neck and his hands still on her waist.

Andy felt Himori tense up, _don't act suspicious, don't act suspicious,_ she chanted at him mentally even though she was well aware he couldn't read her thoughts, Himori kept his tense posture but didn't pull away.

"Sorry," he muttered, before saying out loud, "you should be more careful."

 _Yes, because in some strange parallel universe, this is_ my _fault,_ thought Andy, out loud all she said was "sorry."

Himori's cheeks tinged pink, _act normal;_ he moved his hands from his companion –friend, teammate, partner, _work_ partner, person he should not be acting this way around- waist and attempted to roll back over, this plan was neatly thwarted by the fact that Domyoji still had her hands around his neck, she smelt amazing too. Himori frowned at her, trying to convey his message: _let go.  
_

Instead Domyoji smiled at him, not one of her usual sunny smiles but a small upturning of the lips that, for some reason, made Himori's heart stutter in his chest, his scowl deepened.

"I love you," Himori swore his heart nearly stopped beating and this time his frown was directed at himself, _she wasn't actually talking to you, she's pretending to be your wife,_ he reminded himself, and more importantly; _you don't want her to be talking to you._ This was _Domyoji_ for heaven's sake! Not like it was...

Well actually there wasn't a woman Akiyama was currently interested in, but he wasn't interested in Domyoji either!

Himori focused on her face but, try as he might, he couldn't read anything in her green eyes, usually Domyoji's thoughts were so open she practically wore them on her forehead, not this time.

"I understand that we're undercover," he said very quietly, "but please refrain from saying things like that if you do not have to."

When he got up she made no attempt to stop him, "I'm taking a shower," said Himori, and proceeded to lock himself in the bathroom.

Andy stayed on the bed, her eyebrows raised, she was not surprised at him, but herself, _now what prompted_ that _you imbecile?_ She asked herself.

* * *

Andy, totally lost, turned a corner, she wasn't on the floor with Himori and the others staying at the hotel, she had been on the ground floor and then she'd gone down a flight of stairs, the blueprints they had managed to get their hands on didn't say anything about their being a lower level, that was what had intrigued her.

"Excuse me?" A smooth voice interrupted her thoughts on what she might find –and how she'd ever get out of here if she _did_ find something, she _was_ totally lost after all- Andy turned around.

There was a man, maybe ten or fifteen years older than herself walking towards her, Andy pasted a bright smile on her face.

"Oh! Hello!" She moved towards him, "thank goodness I've found someone! I think I'm totally lost." She giggled, she was playing the part of a rather empty-headed, flighty young woman and it was not a particularly difficult role for her. "Do you think you could help me find my way back?"

The man's face warmed and Andy knew he believed her, "certainly Miss, I'm always happy to help a guest at my establishment."

Andy blinked in surprise but didn't let it show on her face, "oh, you run this hotel?" He nodded.

Well, there was a fortuitous stroke of luck! Andy smiled and stretched out her hand, "I'm Aki Arakaki, nice to meet you!"

* * *

 **Done! Hope you enjoyed guys!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello everyone, nice to see you all.**

 **I own nothing!**

 **Please enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 3: Suspicions

* * *

"I don't suppose the universe decided to cut us some slack and he teleported or moved things with his mind in front of you so you can say for sure he's a Strain?" Himori asked, his voice little more than a whisper.

They were seated at a small, round table outside a cafe nowhere near their hotel so he really didn't have to keep his voice down, but he did anyway, it was just habit after all the effort they went to at the hotel.

Andy shook her head, "afraid not, if he is a Strain and he does have powers he didn't use them in front of me."

Himori sighed and took a sip of his coffee, "well I guess we just keep investigating then." He said. He wasn't actually disappointed, it wasn't like he'd expected the man would just walk around using supernatural abilities 24/7, but still, it would have been nice. For once couldn't things just be easy? No, he supposed not, karma and all that, if things went very well for them now they were bound to screw up later, one way or the other, not that Himori was a huge believer in karma.

"Was there anything else?" He asked, Domyoji knew what he meant, was there anything that wasn't concrete enough to be worth mentioning in their report but she felt he should know? Domyoji's instincts were very good at picking up things and she was very rarely, if ever, wrong.

"Actually... yes," Andy hesitated, she wasn't really sure how to put this into words though, there was something about the hotel owner, Katzuo Usui, that... no... it hadn't _disturbed_ her, she had felt as safe around him as she did any strange man, no more but no less.

But _something_ had been different about him, different enough for Andy to feel obliged to mention it even though she had absolutely no idea what 'it' was.

She needed time to collect her thoughts and Akiyama gave it to her, waiting patiently, he knew she'd get around to it eventually.

"I don't really know what it was..." she admitted, she hadn't found the words she was looking for, better to just tell Himori what she was thinking and see if he had any insight.

"At first I didn't pay any attention to it, I said that I was lost, which was true but I was only lost because I was snooping around, and when I saw he believed me I felt like I had passed a test. But I just attributed it to being relieved he'd bought my lie," she paused to take a sip of her own coffee and Himori nodded, indicating for her to continue.

"But then I told him my name –my fake name, obviously, and... I don't know, I just got this weird feeling, his attitude towards me stayed nice but I felt like now he knew I was bullshitting and wouldn't trust another word I said, it was... strange."

"Very. Are you certain you didn't give him your real name, perhaps combine the two, stutter or mispronounce your 'name' in any way?" Himori asked, he didn't brush her off, his trust in her was too great for that. If Domyoji seriously said there was something weird going on then there was something weird going on.

Andy nodded solemnly, "I'm certain of it."

"But you're sure..." he trailed off, she was sure of what? "That he didn't like your answer when you said you were Aki Arakaki?"

Domyoji shrugged, "well yes, I told you I don't know what it was but that seemed to be it yes."

Now it was Himori's turn to be lost in thought, "could he have known you were lying?" He proposed eventually.

"Like, could he have known I wasn't really who I said I was?" Domyoji re-worded and he nodded, "I don't see how, unless he knows who I really am and I don't see how he could know that."

Akiyama nodded again, "well if that's the case we'll just have to make sure we don't mess up our story and that we're very convincing whenever we see him, and try and find out what he knows."

Andy smiled, Akiyama hadn't doubted her for a second, hadn't told her it was all in her head, that it had been nerves or that she had simply misinterpreted the man, he trusted her instincts and he trusted her.

"Okay," he had his coffee cup in his hand, Andy raised hers in a toast and tapped it against his, "to being a very convincing fake couple," she said.  
Akiyama rolled his eyes.

* * *

As it turned out the two of them didn't have to go looking for Usui, he was in the foyer, chatting to the receptionist. Andy caught Akiyama's eye out of the corner of hers, she didn't nod, she didn't need to, he understood.

Andy made a beeline for Usui, "Mr. Usui, I'm Aki Arakaki, thank you so much for helping me yesterday. If it wasn't for you I'm sure I'd still be lost!"

Usui smiled at her and Akiyama was forced to admit that Domyoji was a master actor, she was overly bright and excitable but she didn't seem false, maybe because those two traits were part of her default personality, thought they were usually tempered by some pretence at seriousness while at Scepter 4. Himori was certain that if he was anywhere near that good then they would have no trouble finding out everything they wanted to know and avoid being caught.

Unfortunately, he wasn't.

He readied himself mentally as Andy waved him over, "It's a pleasure to meet you as well, I'm Hiroto Arakaki, Aki's husband," he said after Usui had introduced himself.

Mentally Andy wrinkled her nose, did he have to sound so bloody formal? They were trying _not_ to sound like they belonged at a place like Scepter 4.

Well it was just part of what made Himori who he was, she supposed, she would never want him to change. Even if it would be easier on undercover missions if he did.

A yellow light glinted in Usui's brown eyes, "oh I'm sure you are," he said, his voice was teasing but Domyoji couldn't understand what he meant by that, not that she was trying, she was more interested in the yellow light she'd seen in his eyes.

They exchanged a few more pleasantries and then Usui left, Andy and Himroi waited until he was gone before Andy whispered, "did you see that too?"

"Yes," he replied.

"The yellow light in his eyes, I mean," she added unnecessarily, what other 'that's' had she noticed?

"Yes," he replied.

"Good, so it wasn't just me, we both saw it," she sighed.

"Yes," he replied.

Andy's eyebrow twitched, "is that your favourite word?"

"Yes."

Well she should have seen that one coming. Andy opened her mouth to grouch at him some more before she saw the light of humour shining in his usually reserved black eyes and the corner of his mouth twitching.

Was he messing with her? Andy hadn't even known he knew how to mess with someone but she supposed the universe was full of surprises; the world was actually round and Himori Akiyama knew how to joke, who would've guessed?

She smiled back playfully, "careful who you're teasing, I might make you sleep on the couch." She whispered, knowing full well that she was teasing.

Himori knew it too, his eyes, his voice and his answering smile were all warm, "no you won't," he breathed.

No she wouldn't. "No I won't," she agreed. His smile widened.

Then what they'd both just said caught up to them, Himori's smile dropped and his cheeks went an adorable shade of pink. Andy felt mortified and knew it showed on her face, that hadn't been a show for the security camera she could see in the corner of her peripheral vision, they'd been whispering. It was similar to Himori's earlier joking but it didn't feel quite the same it... well if Andy was being honest, and generally she tried to be, it felt more like flirting. She cringed mentally, expecting the lieutenant to jump out and scold her for even having that thought.

But it was just a joke, really, and the lieutenant had better things to do than scold the members of Scepter 4 for thinking about thinking of flirting with other members. Or at least Andy hoped she did.

For heaven's sake! Enomoto and Fuse had been dating since January, workplace relationships were not a big deal as long as they didn't get in the way of actual work!

Andy wrapped both of her arms around one of Himori's and gave it a squeeze, "just let me get my coat and then we'll go for a walk," she said in a normal voice, hoping the blush had faded from her cheeks as it had from his.

He nodded, "as you wish."

Andy took off for the stairs at a fast jog.

* * *

When they were at the park, walking slowly around the perimeter Akiyama took a usb out of the pocket of his coat, "Fushimi gave this to me, apparently if we plug it into a computer we can use one of our own to gain remote access and go through someone's files."

"Someone's... like a hotel owners whose eyes turn yellow?" Domyoji asked, eyeing the usb.

"Exactly."

"Are we even allowed to use that?" Andy nodded at the usb.

"I assume that we are," he was about to add, 'would Mr. Fushimi have given it to me if we weren't?' But he knew that was a stupid question.

They both knew the answer to that.

"I don't know where his office is but I could probably find out," Domyoji was saying but Himori didn't fancy that idea. Because it probably meant he'd have to spend more days pretending to be sick to give her the time to find it. And he didn't want to do that, aside from the fact that it was bloody boring, Himori didn't consider himself completely useless and would prefer to be doing more on their assignment than providing an excuse for his partner's behaviour.

Plus, if they kept using that ruse the staff were bound to get suspicious eventually, or by the end of it they'd either think him a hypochondriac or terminally ill.

Instead he sent a message to Benzai; she didn't voice an affirmative but in five minutes he had the information he'd asked for, he smiled slightly, he knew he could count on his oldest companion as surely as he knew he could count on Andy, he showed the redhead his PDA screen, "blueprints of the building, second floor, third door on the right by the stairs."

"What a strange place to have an office, it seems very inconvenient," said Domyoji, peering at the screen.

Himori nodded, "I would think so. But I'm not a possible Strain or a drug smuggler, or a hotel owner so what do I know?"

"Well it's certainly going to be difficult to explain if I'm caught," Andy grumbled.

"Well I'm not going to ask if you can do it, I know you can," he replied.

Andy raised a dark red brow, "I'm not really sure whether to be pleased or insulted at your faith in my ability to lie my way out of a bad situation."

For some reason that startled a laugh out of Akiyama, "I was referring to your ability to get in and out without being caught in the first place," he assured her. "And I prefer to think of it as faith in your acting and improvising abilities rather than your ability to lie."

"'Acting and improvising'," Domyoji wrinkled her nose in that strange yet cute way she had, "that's just a fancy way of saying 'lying'."

"You're twisting my words," said Himori.

"I'm starting to think you're just calling me a liar and trying to mess with my brain to convince me you aren't!" There was no real ire in Domyoji's tone, proved by her sticking her tongue out at him.

Himori Akiyama was usually a very serious man but that opportunity was far too good to pass up, "there's not much to mess with."

Andy stared at him blankly for a second before remembering what she herself had said, "hey!" She punched his arm playfully and stormed off, Himori's laughter chased after her and Andy couldn't help the smile that broke across her own face. Strange, she had always known Himori was indeed capable of laughing and joking but had never thought he was capable of doing so with her. She was learning a lot more than she had expected on this mission and not all of it was about drug-smuggling Strains.

* * *

Back to his usual serious self Himori had more confidence in Domyoji's ability to sneak into a (probable) Strain's (with unknown powers, he might add) office and sabotage (temporarily) his computer, than he was in his ability to stand by a door for 15-20 minutes, 10 if she was quick.

He'd prefer to be at the cafe or park with his laptop so he could access Usui computer the second Domyoji sent him an affirmative text, but the need for him to be on lookout was greater. They'd already seen Usui leave the building, he needed to tell Andy immediately if he came back.

His PDA beeped, she'd done it.

Himori noticed the receptionist eyeing him and gave her a small smile, "my wife insisted on changing her dress before we left for dinner, I had best go and make sure she hasn't gotten lost in the wardrobe."

The receptionist, who had spoken with Andy more than once and heard her thank Mr. Usui for helping her find her way back earlier today, smiled widely, "yes sir, maybe you should."

Himori took the stairs at a run; he walked quickly into his room, looking as though he wanted to be in and out quickly though not like he was rushing and grabbed his laptop bag, before leaving in just the same manner.

He headed back down the stairs and when the receptionist left for a short while he walked quickly out the door, he had no desire to explain to her why he'd left to fetch his 'wife' and come back without her or for her to wonder such things, the two of them weren't even partially sure that she wasn't involved.

Himori made it to the park in record time, opened his computer and started it up, normally he would have no idea how to do what he was doing but Fushimi had taken the time out of his day to give Himori a quick summary of everything he needed to do and how to do it. Enomoto would have been the one he went to with computers but she was on her own assignment right now.

Himori searched the folders, he couldn't find anything with a brief skimming but he hadn't expected to, nothing was that easy.

He dug deeper until he found something; it appeared to be a timetable for 'cargo deliveries,' this could have been perfectly innocent, hotels must have many things delivered to them in the course of their existences. But Akiyama had already passed those several files back. And if these weren't the hotels orders of food, drinks, soaps and the like then what were they?

Still possibly totally innocent. But possibly not.

Himori downloaded the information onto both his laptop and his PDA before continuing his search, he found no other information, but this had been a long shot. If he were a drug smuggler he wouldn't keep information about his illicit business on a non-password protected computer behind an unlocked door in the middle of a busy hotel either.

He sent a message to Domyoji, **checked everything, might have something. Get the usb and get out of there.  
**

She quickly sent back an affirmative.

Himori shut his computer and packed it away before packing it away, he and Andy would discuss what to do next at their favourite 24 hour cafe, it had better lighting than the park, this sucked.

He sat down in one of the chairs outside the cafe and absently ordered a coffee, he didn't get Domyoji one, it would be cold by the time she got here and there was nothing worse than cold coffee. Plus if he accidentally messed up her order she'd probably murder him with a spork, Andy Domyoji loved few things the way she loved coffee.

* * *

Andy ducked back into her own room, the story Himori was to give any who asked was that they were going out for a fancy dinner and she was taking forever to change and get ready, now she had seconds to make herself look as though she had been taking at least an hour.

She slipped out of her clothes and into a short blue dress she had bought while it was on sale, she loved the colour and the cut but hadn't seriously thought she'd ever have an opportunity to wear, she brushed her hair, put on some high heels, dangly earrings and sparkly jewellery, she brushed some powder over her face and put on mascara and lip gloss, she didn't use any eyeliner because she was confident enough in her looks to feel she didn't need any and she'd probably poke her own eye out with it if she tried putting any on. She didn't have any skill putting eyeliner on because she never wore any and she never wore any because she had no skill at putting it on. It was a vicious cycle if ever Andy had seen one.

She grabbed her coat and left swiftly, if anyone did monitor these cameras all of her and Himori's careful planning and lying, wait, no, _acting_ would be for nothing but they'd worry about that if it became a problem, not before.

She left quickly, she had barely made it down the street before hands tried to grab her from the shadows. She hadn't been ready but that didn't mean she hadn't been prepared, she dodged swiftly to the side, kicked out and felt her shoe connect with someone. Then an invisible wall of energy slammed into Andy, sending her flying and crashing into the wall of the nearest building. Her vision blacked and she passed out.

* * *

 **Done! Hope you enjoyed guys. Next chapter soon!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello everyone! Nice to see you. You know the drill; I hope you enjoy and I don't own K project!**

* * *

Chapter 4: Puzzle Pieces

* * *

When Andy awoke she had a pounding headache.

 _Not surprising,_ she thought grimly, considering what had happened to her.

When she had come back to full consciousness she had instinctively opened her eyes which she now regretted, she could hear someone else in the room with her. But fortune smiled upon Andy (for once) and whoever it was hadn't seemed to notice that she was awake. She quickly shut her eyes again, feigning unconsciousness, and peered out from under her lashes.

From the silhouette she could tell the person was a male, she couldn't see any smaller features, she just knew that he was tall, broad shouldered and had brown hair, she was betting it was Usui.

Sure enough when he turned around Katzuo Usui smiled at her, "ah, you're awake."

Well damn, had it been that obvious? Maybe Andy wasn't as good an actor as she thought she was, seeing no point in continuing to pretend, she opened her eyes up fully.

Andy wasn't sure if, in his presence, lying her way out of this situation was even actually possible. She hesitated briefly over dropping the act and simply kicking her way out of here, silly Strain had tied her up with ordinary rope, or pretending she had no idea what she was doing here, she wanted to get out of here now, naturally, but if she could get anything out of him that might help. Yes now she had reason enough to arrest him, to get a warrant and to end her undercover mission. But Usui and others being Strains complicated things, and there was no guarantee they'd catch his accomplices. Anything she could get him to tell her now would be a blessing.

As far as she could see, she was in no immediate danger, she had clearly been underestimated.

"What do you want with me?" She demanded, pretending to struggle against the ropes, she could burn them to cinders in an instant but the longer he remained unaware of that the longer the element of surprise stayed on her side. Not that she was likely to need it.

"Just to answer a few questions, and then when your companion gets here-"

"What? I'll be free to go?" Andy demanded, she knew how stupid that would be, she knew his name and his face. Whether she was with Scepter 4 or not he had attacked her and tied her up. It would be foolish to let her go now.

"No. Then we'll kill you both, but rest assured you probably have a few hours left before he finds you." Yeah, interesting point, where was she? Her eyes flicked left and right, there was nothing but the desk at which Usui had been standing, there was a gun and a computer on the desk, the computer seemed to be showing footage from video cameras. Ah ha! They'd been right! Then again, those cameras weren't necessarily in the hotel, they could be from anywhere but still; video cameras! They'd been partially right!

The walls were bare cement, oh dear God please no more abandoned warehouses. Wait, there were no windows and the room was quite dark with only a single swinging lamp. Andy had no way of knowing for sure but she thought they might be underground.

"Now," Usui knelt down beside her, "answer my questions."

 _Why should I? You just said you planned on killing me,_ Andy thought, but she decided to play along. The more he talked the more he revealed, even if he didn't notice it. She would just have to be careful she didn't do the same.

If he was planning to kill her the smart thing to do would have been to kill her before she woke up. But he didn't know just what Domyoji was capable of. And it's not like she was complaining.

"Why are you doing this?" She demanded, as if she didn't already know.

He raised an eyebrow, "I think the better question is; why are _you_ doing this? Are you a cop?"

Time to see if he really could tell whether people were lying or not. "No! Of course not!"

He kicked her in the ribs, scumbag, "you're lying!"

Guess he could then, "Are. You. A. Cop? Answer me!"

What a dumbshit, if she'd said 'no' and was lying then the only remaining answer was 'yes.' Well, maybe she could lie by omission, time to see if that worked.

She glared at him, making an obvious show or reluctance, "I work for the police force yes."

He smiled, "there now, that wasn't so hard, was it?"

Apparently there were loopholes. It wasn't technically lying by omission as she _was_ genuinely part of the police force. It wasn't her fault he hadn't asked her to specify what kind of police force.

"What's your name?" He demanded.

"Aki Arakaki," she lied.

He kicked her again, "try again!" Andy gritted her teeth, why was she doing this again? Right, keep him talking.

"What?! Can you psychically tell if I'm lying or something?" She challenged even though she was pretty sure by now he could.

"Basically yes," he admitted. Well that was easy. "It's a particular _talent_ of mine."

"Judging by the fact that you run a drug ring and kick tied up women, I'm guessing that's your only talent," Andy sneered. She knew it probably wasn't her greatest idea to piss him off while pretending to be at his mercy but she had an ulterior motive, she wanted to know if there was anything else he could do. Someone had thrown her into that wall without touching her earlier and if it was him she wanted to know that before she tried escaping.

She was still pretty sure she could take him on if it was him but best always to be sure.

Plus, people didn't think clearly when they were angry.

Annoyance crossed his face briefly and Andy knew she'd at least partway succeeded, then he shrugged, "well I'm quite certain both running a drug ring and being able to tell if someone's lying are far more impressive than anything you're capable of." That's what he thought.

Andy sneered again, "why would I want to run a drug ring. I'm not a selfish, stupid rat like you."

He glowered.

"Who's really behind this? You aren't smart enough to come up with it on your own," she said.

 _Come on, tell me,_ she thought. She really wanted to get out of here. Based on his reactions he wasn't the one who telekinetically slammed her into the wall or whatever had happened. But if he wasn't, who was? She really wanted him to tell her without provoking him further. If he kicked her one more time Andy was sure she'd blow her cover by breaking free of the ropes and taking great pleasure in kicking him in the balls.

 _Okay,_ she decided, _if he doesn't tell me right now I'm dragging him back to headquarters and_ they _can get it out of him._ If worse came to worse than Captain Munakata would be the one asking the question. And one did not simply just _not_ tell the Blue King what she wanted to know. If she even needed to ask. Andy was pretty sure Munakata could read minds and those pretty amythest eyes could _see into your soul._ She shuddered mentally, she adored the woman, looked up to her, and would happily die for her and her cause. But Andy wasn't going to lie about it, Munakata scared the living daylights out of her.

Kings tended to have that effect on people simply by breathing. But Munakata more than others.

Usui grabbed Andy's red hair and brought her face up to his, making her grit her teeth and fight the urge to burn off her bindings and punch him in the face, _just a little longer, just a little longer,_ she told herself.

"I know what you're trying to do." Oh really? "But it's useless; the minute your partner finally finds you I'm killing you both. So there's no reason to tell you anything."

 _Great, this whole thing was a huge waste of time,_ Domyoji burnt off her bindings and punched him in the face.

She didn't knock him out but he did stagger back, clutching his cheekbone. Andy had made sure not to punch him in the mouth, couldn't talk with a broken jaw.

Andy got to her feet and kicked him in the side of the head, he went down like a rock, Scepter 4 training had taught her exactly how much force to exert and where to incapacitate someone without killing or permanently maiming them.

Andy wriggled her foot, that had hurt. Scepter 4 or no Scepter 4, kicking someone in the head in heels hurt. Scepter 4 or no Scepter 4, kicking someone in the head hurt regardless of what shoes you were wearing!

Andy used Usui's belt to strap his hands together then she searched for her bag, she couldn't find it, damn! Her phone had been in there! Well she was going to have to find some other way of contacting Akiyama once she was out of here. Oh well, if she really was underground like she thought she was then it probably wouldn't have worked anyway.

Andy picked up the gun and then heated the metal until melted beyond recognition and was hot to even her touch. Good riddance! She hated the damn things. She tossed it on the stone floor where it clattered and hissed against the cold.

Andy hoisted Usui onto her back, slipping his bound arms around her neck and swearing softly at the weight. She was strong, due to being a clansman and one of the Blue Clan where everyone trained regularly, but she wasn't superwoman or anything. This guy was freaking heavy.

She walked over to the door and kicked it off its hinges, she couldn't use either of her hands and that had made a lot of noise, she prayed she'd get out of here before she ran into anyone else. Or if that wasn't possible, at least before she ran into someone who had more offensive abilities than being a living lie-detector.

Domyoji poked her head out of the door and looked first to the left and then to the right, the corridor stretched for a few meters in both directions, both halls ending in a nondescript white door. Shrugging mentally Andy went left.

* * *

"And she never showed, I've tried calling her but there's been no response," said Himori, trying to keep his frustration out of his voice, partly because it would do him no good and partly because there was no reason to snap at Benzai and the others, it wasn't their fault, it was his.

But he really wanted to be back out there searching for Andreana, not standing her filling in his co-workers who had already been debriefed!

But they were worried about her too and wanted to know what had really happened.

So Akiyama told them, he told them how, like an idiot he'd let her be the one who snuck into Katzuo Usui's office, yes, he was aware, they both had been, that it would be easier for her to talk her way out of being caught but they'd known there was a risk of her being watched anyway, he should have insisted on being the one to do it.

And then he'd left her there to see if he could find some stupid information. He should have waited. They should have left the stupid usb in the stupid freaking computer and then rendezvoused before they went to look for information; they could get the usb back later and even if they couldn't there was nothing that could be traced back to them or Scepter 4. To hell with the usb, to hell with it all! Information and proof was important, but not at the cost of his partner!

He never should have left her.

They split up again, in groups of two or three, before they went more than a couple of steps Benzai reached out and laid a slender hand on his shoulder, her thin fingers applying just the slightest amount of pressure.

"Himori," she used his first name, she didn't say anything else but there were years of rapport between them, he knew what she was trying to say, that this wasn't his fault, he'd had no way of knowing that something like this would happen.

But it felt like it was his fault, he hadn't known that Andy would be attacked on her way to meet him but he should have foreseen it. The reason they went to all of these elaborate schemes was in case they were really being watched, but when one of them had to sneak into a suspected drug runner and almost-certain Strain's office was when they should have stopped caring!

"Himori," Benzai said again, her usually serious tone sharper this time, he shook himself and looked over at her.

He caught her eye and nodded, she was right, whether it was his fault or not, nothing would be gained by brooding about it, she understood and let go, the pair of them moved off, they were searching the first level of the hotel, Hidaka and Goto had the level above that and the Lieutenant had the top level, Kamo, Fuse and some members who weren't in the special squad were searching the basement level which was as large as a whole floor at least. Akiyama, Benzai and the others above ground were just looking for anything that might be of use, Kamo, Enomoto and Fuse were actively hoping to find Domyoji. Himori was hoping that to.

He gritted his teeth, he wanted to be down there too, not just because of the guilt, worry and outright panic that was eating at him but because he was absolutely certain that they would find nothing. The only room that wasn't a suite on any of these floors were the reception area, Enomoto was staying there to go through the computer and Usui's office on the third floor. Akiyama didn't know what the Lieutenant expected them to find anywhere else, a list of Usui's accomplaces pinned to a wall on bright red paper with purple sparkles?!

But orders were orders and Akiyama would follow them, even if he didn't like them. But he had faith in Scepter 4. They'd find her, no matter what it took.

* * *

 _Damnit! This bastard's heavy! Where the hell am I?_ Andy grumbled mentally, she had barely enough time to finish the thought before an invisible blow knocked her against the wall, she hit with a thud and Usui, his arms around her neck putting pressure on her air supply, also hitting the wall, strangled her briefly.

Domyoji didn't curse out loud, she didn't have the air for that, instead she instinctively ducked, she slipped out of Usui's arms and did a sort of sideways roll across the floor, air whooshed past her and if she'd been standing where she was a second ago she'd have been slammed against the wall again. As it was only Usui's prone form hit the wall before collapsing floppily to the floor. Andy tried not to be too pleased about that with marginal success.

She glanced up and instantly recognized her attacker, a man she didn't recognize and the receptionist from Usui's stood holding the arms of another man she didn't recognize, it was the receptionist, of all people, who had attacked her, Andy knew this because she raised a her free hand and sent another energy blast her way.

Domyoji activated her sanctum and kicked out, a trail of blue fire followed her kick, it met the wind-like force and the two cancelled each other out. Andy was quicker though and sent another blue fire ball towards them.

The man in the middle gripped the receptionist wind-lady's wrist in return and Andy's fire went straight through the three of them.

That was how they'd snuck up on her! The man had intangibility! Man, that was way cool!

This would make a good story. If she made it out of here.

Andy bolted for the next door, yes, she wanted to take Usui into custody but it wasn't worth fighting three Strains, one of whom was definitely Beta-class, another with intangibility and the third with unknown powers.

This time when the wind-force hit the blue fire Andy sent back at it the force of the two colliding knocked her to the ground. The two male Strains were running towards her but thanks to the first man's power the blast again passed harmlessly through them, Andy jumped up and made to run again but the second man turned tangible for a second and grabbed her wrist. Andy fell to the floor, conscious, but unable to move. No matter how hard she tried she could not so much as move her eyes. She was utterly trapped in her own body.

Fear and fury welled up in Andy in equal measure, she should never have stayed to talk to Usui, she should have left immediately, she never should have bothered to take him with her. These guys never should have been such assholes! So many 'should have's.'

"What do we do with her?" One of the men, the intangible one, who was holding Andy.

"Who cares? Kill her," said wind-lady coldly.

"Let's just get out of here," said the paralysing man, picking Usui, who was beginning to stir, up and undoing the belt around his wrists and slinging one of his arms around his shoulders.

"First things first," said wind-lady, God, how had they been fooled by her pleasant demeanour? She drew a knife from her belt, Andy tried to struggle but she was trapped more efficiently then if she'd been bound head to toe. Fear stuttered in her chest, she was going to die here, alone.

* * *

"You seem very wound up," Benzai commented.

"You aren't?" Himori asked shortly.

"Yes, I am, but not like you." Benzai paused, how did one phrase this, "what is she to you?"

Himori's black eyes met her pale brown ones, "she's the co-worker and trusted friend I will not let anything happen to," he vowed, his heart ached at the thought.

"Is that all?" Yujiro, who knew him better than anyone, asked.

Himori stopped; he thought about Andy, about her impish grin, the light in her green eyes that brightened up his entire day, the sense of security he felt around her, someone who he would protect with his life, who would always have his back. Who he trusted implicitly, more than a normal co-worker. Much more. "I don't know," he told Benzai truthfully.

* * *

Andy fought to keep her eyes open, that sadistic bitch, pardon Andy's French, hadn't even had the decency to kill her outright, they'd slit both her wrists and left her on the floor to die.

There was something warm and wet touching her cheek, dimly Andy realised it was her own blood but she couldn't work up the energy to care. Dimly she heard voices she thought one of them sounded like Fuse. Hands grabbed her wrists and tried to stop the bleeding but Andy couldn't tell whom they belonged to, she tried to say something but her vision blackened and she fainted.

* * *

 **Done! Tell me what you think guys. Hope you enjoyed. Bye!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello everyone, here is the last chapter! Many thanks to anyone who read this far and my best friend viexon for her review. Don't worry, he will.**

 **That's all guys, hope you enjoy. I own nothing!**

* * *

Chapter 5: Loose ends

* * *

"Andy?" A soft voice was calling her name, she wanted to respond but her body felt so heavy that she couldn't even move her lips, "Andreana!" The voice sounded familiar, it made her feel safe, cared for, but there was an edge to it now, whoever it was wanted her to answer them, and they wanted her to do it now. She wanted to answer them too, but she was so tired...

"Domyoji!"

"What!?" Her eyes snapped open, she sat bolt upright.

Himori's black eyes widened, she was awake she was okay, at least partially.

"Himori what-?" Andy began but was cut off.

Himori cupped her cheek in the palm of his hand and kissed her, Andy had never been kissed like that before, it was rough and desperate and passionate and left her head spinning.

Her eyes were wide open when he touched her face but slowly they began to slide shut and she let herself kiss back.

As quickly as it had begun Himori pulled back. His breathing was coming fast, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that."

"I'm glad you did," said Andy honestly. Part of both of them felt like they'd just jumped headfirst into something neither of them fully understood, but another part of each of them realized that this had been waiting to happen between them for a long time.

His hand left her cheek to wrap around her own hand, his thumb ever so gently brushed the white bandages around her wrist. "You had us worried there for a minute, Fuse and the others found you lying in a pool of your own blood. You lost consciousness just as they found you. You've been out for a while.  
Now that he'd drawn her attention to it Andy was aware of a dull, burning pain in a line on each wrist.

"Ow," she said, surprised she hadn't noticed earlier.

He gave her a sympathetic smile, "I was afraid I'd lost you, afraid that my stupidity in not telling you how I felt would be a lifelong regret. I'm sorry."

Andy's heart beat faster, "are you saying...?"

"I am," he leaned forwards until his forehead was rested against hers, "yes. I love you, even though I was too blind to see it. And if you ever do something as stupid as taking on three Strains alone I will kill you myself."

Andy huffed even though her heart was singing, "I love you too by the way, and it wasn't like I'd planned that!"

Himori's elated smile faded and he leaned back, "I'm sorry, I should have been there with you."

Andy shook her head, "no way! You don't get to blame yourself for this! It was my plan, not yours; I was the one who had a way better chance of pulling it off. Anything going awry was not your fault."

Himori sighed, "I suppose I knew that. But it doesn't stop me from wanting to do more."

Andy reached out and tugged on a lock of his black hair, "thank you," she whispered, "but there was nothing else you could have done."

He turned his head slightly so his cheek was pressed against her hand, "Well if you say so," he mumbled. He didn't sound totally convinced, but he didn't sound totally guilt-ridden anymore either so Andy countered it as a win.

"Himori I-"

The door opened, "Akiyama we-" Benzai stopped looking from one to the other, "is this a bad time?" Something had changed between the black-haired male and the red-haired female, she could feel it.

Andy outright glowered, Himori just gave his best friend a cool look, "yes," he said flatly.

Benzai leaned slightly on the doorframe, her lips twitching, normally she was the most serious member of the special squad but something about her best friend's relationship with Andreana Domyoji always made her fight to keep herself from laughing out loud.

They were cute together, she supposed. She was happy for them.

But she needed to talk to Akiyama, "Kamo and I found Usui, the lieutenant's questioning him now, she asked for you to look in," she turned to Andy and pinned her with a sharp gaze, Andy was an only child so she didn't have any older sisters, but she thought the look Benzai was giving her was remarkably like one an older sister would give a younger sister when she was trying to be stern.

"Domyoji, you're to stay here, when the doctors say you're free to go, then you can go but not one second earlier. Lieutenant said so, understand?"

Andy nodded glumly, she hadn't really expected anything else, but that didn't mean she had to like it.

Benzai left, Himori turned back to Andy, he squeezed her hand, "I'm going to be gone for a few hours, you'll probably be let out before then. Do you think you can keep yourself out of a potentially life-threatening situation for that long? Please? If you really try I'm sure you can do it."

Andy reached behind her with her free hand and grabbed the pillow she had been sleeping on and hit him with it, "bastard! Get out!"

Himori didn't smile as he raised his arms to protect himself, but there was a light in his eyes.

* * *

Akiyama stared dispassionately at Katzuo Usui through the one-way glass, the most appealing thing about the man had to be the blue-black bruise over his left temple where Andy had kicked him in the head. That and the way he flinched every time Awashima so much as blinked, she was one scary woman, that was for sure, and she had the Strain dancing as she pulled the strings, Akiyama wanted to sneer at the other man but he knew that if the lieutenant was glaring at _him_ like that _he'd_ tell her what she wanted to know, when she wanted to know it too.

Things seemed to be going well.

* * *

Andy waited in her room like a good little girl. For approximately a minute and a half. Then she huffed out a breath in annoyance and impatience, making her red bangs flutter.

"Well I don't like this," she said out loud to herself.

She itched to get up, find her clothes, get dressed and get out of here and do something that was actually useful. But she couldn't, she'd heard Benzai, lieutenant's orders.

Well... Benzai hadn't actually said the word 'orders' but she'd been pretty clear, it was not 'just a suggestion.' And Andy couldn't claim she had ever thought it was.

Could she?

Interesting question.

* * *

"Three down, one more to go," said Benzai, putting her phone back on its lock screen with a flick of her thumb.

Himori nodded and the tension in his shoulders that he hadn't even noticed until now, eased.

 _This_ was the type of work he was used to, not being undercover, pretending to be someone he wasn't and constantly speaking in whispers.

They had Usui and his two male companions in custody, they'd had trouble taking down the male with intangibility but a sword hilt to the back of the head, knocking him right out, courtesy of Mr. Fushimi, had solved that problem.

Now only Yusuka Hagi, the receptionist, the woman who had slit Domyoji's wrists and left her to die remained.

Himori was going to make sure she answered for what she did.

* * *

Andy was at the point where literally growling like a rabid dog at the next person who told her she wasn't allowed to do something, or came near her at all, was very appealing.

After leaving her room at the hospital she'd found the clothes, her clothes, the others had brought with them, including –oh thank goodness finally- her sabre.

As she clutched Excalibur tightly to her chest she considered her options.

Seri Awashima was an incredibly beautiful woman. But she hadn't gotten where she was by being beautiful, she had gotten there by also being an incredibly capable and intelligent woman.

And as an intelligent woman she'd had the foresight to see that Andy might try doing exactly what she'd done and prevent her from doing it.

When she'd tried to head down to the interrogation rooms –yes they had interrogation rooms, they were Scepter 4 they had everything!- a member of Scepter 4, one she didn't recognize, stopped her and told her that the lieutenant had ordered him to make sure the 'redhead with a temper' didn't get herself involved in their investigation and told Andy that, and he was quoting Awashima here; 'you are still injured, go back to the hospital or go back to the offices, get some work done and shut up.'

Andy was having a very hard time keeping that previously mentioned temper in check, she knew the lieutenant meant well but still!

She was already here wasn't she! She might as well get some real work done! And done get involved?! Really!? She was already involved! She had spent weeks undercover! Gotten kidnapped! Been paralysed, had her wrists slit and been left to bleed out on the floor.

And then told not to get involved?!

Domyoji had stormed off but instead of going back to the office or even the hospital she found herself sitting on a bench in the middle of the city by one of her favourite video games shops, and pouting like the small child Himori had accused her of being what seemed like forever ago.

She sighed and stared sightlessly into the distance, well now what? She couldn't go back to the interrogation rooms, though admittedly it hadn't seemed like there was much of use she could do there anyway, but the guy the lieutenant had left to guard the door had assured her she wouldn't be getting near the ongoing search for Yusuka Hagi either. Not without some sort of disguise anyway.

A flash of red caught her attention; it was the hair of that small young woman from HOMRA, the one with the skateboard who didn't like Fushimi.

The girl's brown eyes, caught Andy staring at her, "problem Blue?" She asked semi-agressively.

A wild and frankly ridiculous idea formed in Domyoji's head, it was crazy, but it was so crazy it just might work.

"No, but I'd like to make a deal I think you'll be interested in," she said, standing.

Misaki Yata, ex-Red Clansman, balked in surprise, she'd never expected the Blue to respond with something like that. Yata was one part hostile, but two parts curious.

"What deal?"

* * *

Benzai gritted her teeth as a blast of wind, or was it simple telekinesis? Hard to say, slammed her into a wall, jolting her whole body painfully. Normally Yujiro considered herself a fair too polite and eloquent woman to consider calling someone a 'bitch.' But Yusuka Hagi was pushing that theory to its limit, the Strain was a real piece of work that was for sure.

Out of the corner of her eye Benzai spied a young woman with red hair in a black beanie with a white v-necked, elbow-length shirt and green shorts, she was carrying a skateboard with the letters HMR just above the wheel, great, just what they needed a bloody Red, "not now," Benzai said, with a glare out of the corner of her eye, to the Red girl.

She swung her sabre; Afterglow, and a trail of blue fire sped towards Hagi, forcing the woman to duck.

Benzai was about to follow up on her attack but Hagi was faster, she flicked her arm in the movement she always used to generate her powers and Benzai braced herself for another blow.

It never happened, the redhead kicked out, her blue and orange shoe making an arc through the air and a trail of blue fire followed it, forcing Hagi to jump out of the way or risk being burnt alive. Unfortunately for her she landed badly and teetered on her impractical high-heeled shoes, Benzai was too busy gaping at the fact that the redhead woman had used _blue_ fire but Andy dropped Yata's skateboard and strode forwards.

"Stay away from my friend!" She yelled. Just as Hagi regained her balance Domyoji reached her and shoved her over anyway. "And that's for trying to kill me. Bitch!" Unlike Benzai, Andy considered herself neither polite nor eloquent.

Benzai had a vague thought that she should shut her mouth before it froze that way, she swallowed, "Domyoji?! What are you doing here? You should be resting! And why are you dressed like that?"

Andy tugged playfully on the beanie and grinned, now that she was closer Benzai could clearly see the wide green eyes and child-like smile that defined her roommate and friend, "admit it, I totally got you," she teased, "you had no idea it was me," she retrieved the HOMRA girl's skateboard and brushed imaginary dirt off of it while Benzai pointed her sabre at Hagi, who was slowly attempting to rise.

"Go on, get back up, I dare you," she said in a tone that dripped venom, this animal had left one of her closest co-workers to die!

Hagi wisely felt it would be in her best interests to stay on the ground.

"Yes, you got me. I was hardly expecting you to show up here, I thought we had this area closed off, and _why are you dressed like that?"_ She bent to cuff Hagi with a pair of power-restraining handcuffs. _  
_

Andy laughed, "well you basically just answered your own question there Benzai, you guys had this area sectioned off, the lieutenant made it quite clear that I wasn't allowed anywhere near here. So I decided to be someone else."

"Oh really?" Said Benzai, raising an eyebrow, "you weren't allowed anywhere near here but a member of the _Red Clan_ was allowed to waltz on past?"

Andy shrugged, "they saw the skateboard and were too terrified to put up anything more that a passing objection, what can I say? Misaki has a reputation. She's almost too cool to be a Red!"

"Misaki?" Asked Benzai, a feeling of dread settling in her stomach, oh God, Domyoji hadn't actually made friends with one of them, had she?

"She said I could call her that." Andy held out her foot and wriggled it, causing the laces on Yata's shoes to wiggle, "and we have the same shoe size, we're going to be friends forever!"

Oh God it looked like she had, "uh, does _she_ know that you're going to be friends forever?" She asked apprehensively.

Domyoji looked insulted, "of course!"

* * *

Misaki Yata was kind of nervous, she was after all in a pit of vipers, but she couldn't help but hum to herself ever so slightly, today had been a very weird day, but it was shaping up to be an interesting one.

The clothes she was in were a bit big and the sabre at her waist felt awkward, however the shoes fit well and it would all be worth it, yes, it would all be worth it in the end.

She just needed to not get caught.

The office was right where Andy had said it would be, that was good. Yata smiled, Andy was almost too awesome to be a Blue.

Her eyes flicked up and down the corridor but there was no one in sight.

Her hand wrapped around the cylindrical object in her pocket and she opened the door, once inside she shut the door quietly and pulled the spray paint out of Andy's coat pocket. She shook it a couple of times before beginning to paint Fushimi's office a bright, ruby red.

Karma was a bitch and so was she!

* * *

"Everything's finished, it's over," said Himori as they ushered Hagi into the back of the Scepter 4 van, they'd take her into custody, but, as a Beta-class Strain, the Usagi would deal with her later.

Andy rubbed the back of her neck tiredly, her wrist twinged, "maybe for you but I have a heck of a lot of paperwork to fill out still."

"Yes, speaking of paperwork and reports and explaining things, dare I even ask?" He nodded at Andy's attire and she smiled. There had been no fooling Himori the way she'd fooled Benzai. He had known immediately it was her.

Before she could answer though, he held up his hands, "wait, no. Don't tell me. I'm sure I don't want to know."

"Aww," Andy wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly, "but you're my husband! I'm supposed to tell you things!"

Himori sighed, mentally cursing the lieutenant for ever even thinking up this mission, let alone thinking it was actually a good idea, let alone thinking it would be a good idea for the two of _them_ to be the ones to go undercover, "you're never going to let that go, are you?"

Andy smiled again, "nope, get used to it!"

Himori shrugged, "worse things have happened to me," he pulled her closer and kissed her, saying, without words, all the things he should have admitted earlier, to both himself and to her, he'd been too stubborn to admit to his feelings until he'd almost lost her, he would never make that mistake again.

* * *

The next day Saruhiko Fushimi looked around his office and blinked, a part of him was sure he'd taken a wrong turn and opened the door but most of him knew he couldn't mistake his own workspace, even if each and every inch had been spray painted a eye-watering red.

This was Misaki's doing. He didn't know how she'd gotten in here, just that she had, and, now that he looked closer, he could tell that this was definitely his office.

Mostly because the words 'shitty monkey,' burnt across his desk could not be directed at anyone else.

Saruhiko couldn't help but smile, "aww! Such attention to detail! I knew you cared about me Misaki!"

* * *

 **And that's this story done! Hope you enjoyed guys. Bye!**


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